Kalorama: With Bloodhound, Roche Closes in on High-Growth Hematology Segment

NEW YORK, July 2, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Roche's Bloodhound technology is on the trail of a conspicuously high-growth market segment in hematology testing, according to Kalorama Information. The healthcare market research publisher said that Roche's recent unveiling of its Bloodhound digital cell imaging technology –as newly integrated into the cobas m 511 hematology analyzer – is notable as a play to not only capture growth enjoyed by current leader CellaVision, but also compete more broadly in core lab hematology.

Kalorama says that Cellavision has averaged roughly 13% annual growth over both the last two years and four years (2012-2014; 2010-2014). In North America, CellaVision has accomplished average annual growth of approximately 18% since 2010.

"Roche's already omnipotent presence in IVD is set to expand as it enters the field of lab hematology," said Emil Salazar, analyst for Kalorama Information, in a recent blog.

Salazar noted that the demand for core lab automation is limited only by the diminishing compromises to testing accuracy, sensitivity, or reliability. The last domain in lab hematology outside the reach of automation has been manual review. Manual review of slided and stained blood samples is taxing in terms of lab personnel time and its estimation principles very limited compared to high-speed neural networking available on digital cell imaging platforms. Automated visual analysis overcomes the limitations of analyzer differentials and potential errors of laborious manual differentials. Automation is becoming increasingly indispensible to labs managing relatively high volumes of flagged blood samples.

The ambitions of Roche Diagnostics in hematology are clearly indicated in the capabilities of the cobas m 511. The instrument addresses the entire core lab hematology station workflow – slide making; slide staining; complete blood count (CBC); differentials; and streamlined, software-assisted manual review of slided, stained and imaged cells. The system replaces inconsistent wedge smearing with needle-guided uniformly printed blood in order to produce consistent results and distinguish cells. The slides are stained and the cells then spectrally and visually analyzed to yield 26 CBC and differential parameters. Cell morphology can be reviewed at the workstation or remotely by a pathologist for more demanding diagnoses.

The scope of the cobas m 511 contrasts to that of CellaVision's DM1200 and DM9600 cell imaging systems. CellaVision systems only perform cell morphological analysis of blood and body fluid smears as well as differentials. Coordinated CBCs and analyzer differentials are available from major CellaVision distribution partners and hematology analyzer vendors Sysmex, Beckman Coulter, Siemens, and Abbott. The cobas m 511 will effectively target the entire workflow represented by competitors' partnered solutions with CellaVision. The instrument's market launch will ultimately reveal where placements are likely to predominate, though Kalorama Information expects the greatest success in centralized network and reference laboratories responsible for samples of patients with blood cancers, hemoglobinopathies, and immune system disorders. More distributed placements are possible due to the smaller footprint of the cobas m 511, but will be contingent upon the price of the system.

About Kalorama InformationKalorama Information, a division of MarketResearch.com, supplies the latest in independent medical market research in diagnostics, biotech, pharmaceuticals, medical devices and healthcare; as well as a full range of custom research services. Reports can be purchased through Kalorama's website and are also available on www.marketresearch.com and www.profound.com.